


Tea and Archery

by aphreal



Category: Dragon Age, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Family, Gen, Headcanon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-13
Updated: 2013-02-13
Packaged: 2017-11-29 04:57:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/683037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aphreal/pseuds/aphreal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A young Alexia Cousland complains to her mother about being excluded from sword practice during visits to Vigil's Keep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tea and Archery

**Author's Note:**

> I have a fascination with the structure and customs of nobility, which has spawned a lot of headcanons about Cousland-Howe interactions. This is a brief glimpse into one of them.

"It's not fair!" Alexia proclaimed, with all of the righteous anger available to an eleven-year-old girl facing personal injustice. 

"Have a cup of tea," Eleanor responded calmly. 

"Mother!" Alexia planted her hands on her hips. She looked utterly out of place in the elegant sitting room, dressed in worn leathers still dusty from the practice yard, her golden hair escaping wildly from its loose braid. "Tea is not going to fix this."

"Maybe it won't," her mother conceded mildly. "But neither will standing there sulking. Come have a cup of tea, and you can tell me about it." 

Helpless in the face of calm parental practicality, Alexia gave in and joined her mother at the small table, scuffing her boots across the carpet as she went. 

Once she was seated, Eleanor smiled warmly at her and poured them each a cup from the pot of tea she had been steeping. Alexia started to say something, another protest about the utter unfairness of the situation, but her mother cut her off with a raised finger. 

Rolling her eyes, Alexia lifted her cup and took a too-large gulp of the hot tea, scalding her mouth in the process. Although she'd never admit it, she felt some of her frustration ease as her muscles relaxed around the warm liquid running down her throat and radiating through her belly. 

Eleanor, meanwhile, took a more cautious sip, savored the brew for a moment, and delicately returned her cup to its saucer. "Now, what seems to be the problem, dear?"

"Fergus is allowed to train and I'm not!" Her anger came surging back, its intensity unabated. "All because stupid Thomas convinced his stupid father to make a rule that girls aren't allowed to use swords. It's not fair!"

"No, it isn't fair." Eleanor's simple agreement took her daughter by surprise, but before Alexia could seize on it to plead her case, she continued in a measured tone. "But while we are guests at Vigil's Keep, we will respect Rendon's rules, just like we would expect him to do as a guest in our home."

Alexia frowned, fiddling with the handle of her cup as she tried to come up with an argument to counter her mother's patient logic. 

Before she managed it, there was a tapping on the open door, followed by a polite inquiry. "Might I join you ladies?"

"Nathaniel," Eleanor greeted the boy with a pleasant smile. "Please come in."

Alexia turned to see their host's elder son, a few years her senior. She frowned as she took in his neat appearance, dark hair braided back into a tidy queue, black leathers oiled and free of dirt. Just looking at him made her feel scruffy. He smiled at her as he came to stand beside the table, and she looked away, glaring sulkily into her tea. 

"Nate," she acknowledged. "Why aren't you practicing with Thomas and Fergus? Come to gloat?"

"Alexia!" Her mother's sharp rebuke didn't make her feel nearly as guilty as the hurt look that flickered in Nate's eyes when she shot him a reproachful glance. 

"You and I both know Thomas is jealous that you're better than him," he said, ignoring her rudeness. "This is the only way he can beat you, and you shouldn't let him." 

Intrigued, she looked up from her cup to meet his serious gaze, tilting her head curiously to encourage him to continue. 

"Father's ban is only against girls using swords, right?"

Alexia pulled a face. "I'm not going to spar with a _dagger_ ," she said scornfully. 

Nate shook his head. "He'd forbid that quickly enough anyway. I had something else in mind. Have you ever shot a bow?"

Alexia must have looked skeptical as she shook her head because he quickly continued in a more persuasive tone. 

"I've been learning archery, and I could teach you some if you want. We can go up on the battlements where Father won't see. He can't stop you from doing something he doesn't know about." 

Alexia absently took a sip of tea as she considered his offer. She'd never been particularly interested in archery, preferring the more direct approach of hitting things with a large piece of sharpened metal. On the other hand, shooting things off the battlements sounded a lot better than sitting quietly and learning embroidery with Delilah. And Nate wouldn't expect her to wear a dress, either. 

Setting down her cup with a decisive clink, she pushed back her chair and stood up. "Deal," she said, smiling in response to his immediate grin. She started to leave and then hesitated, remembering her manners. "If it's all right for me to be excused, mother."

"Of course, child." Eleanor waved towards the door with the hand not holding her tea. "You two go have fun."

Alexia beamed and bobbed her mother an abbreviated curtsey, which felt awkward in her sparring leathers, before grabbing Nate's hand to drag him out of the room. He managed to give Eleanor a polite, grave nod as he was pulled away. 

Watching them leave, Eleanor's lips curled into a smile against the rim of her teacup. Perhaps it was time to talk to Bryce about planning for their daughter's dowry. Alexia was still young, but it couldn’t hurt to start thinking about her future. All Eleanor had ever wanted for her children was to see them grow up to be happy.


End file.
